This Year's Family Fandango Will Be Held on Saturday Au- Gust 5, 2017 from 5:00 Pm to 8:00 Pm at Santa Teresa Park's Bernal-Gulnac-Joice Ranch

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Friends of Santa Teresa Park Newsletter Summer 2017

Meetings: 7:00 pm, 1st Thursday of each month. Upper Clubhouse/Banquet Facility, Santa Teresa Golf Club 260 Bernal Road, San Jose, CA Website: http://www.stpfriends.org Officers: Mike Boulland, President Kitty Monahan, Vice President Ronald Horii, Secretary, Webmaster, Newsletter Editor Greg Koopman: Treasurer

The Hidden Springs Trail leading to Coyote Peak

This year's Family Fandango will be held on Saturday Au- gust 5, 2017 from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Santa Teresa Park's Bernal-Gulnac-Joice Ranch. It is being organized by County Parks Interpreters John Dorrance and Bridget Or- cutt. The Friends of Santa Teresa Park will have an infor- mation table there, and members will help with activities.

Last year, after a 1-year absence due to staffing shortages, Mexican folk dancers at Fandango, with Janice Frazier and her horse the annual Family Fandango event was held on August 13, Caribe in the background. 2016. It's an event that celebrates the history of Rancho Santa Teresa, with a focus on the Mexican settlement peri- Tuesday, August 1, 2017, 5-7:30 pm. Free ice cream and od. It was organized by County Parks Interpreter Chris Car- cookies. Bring your family to our fun event. Meet your son Seals, with the help of many staff, volunteers, and neighbors and public safety officials. Speak with local and partners, including Open Space Authority of Santa Clara county representatives. Fire engines, park ranger trucks, Valley Educational Programs Coordinator Teri Rogoway. sheriff and police patrol cars, and other emergency vehicles Exhibitors included the Friends of Santa Teresa Park will be on display. Children’s crafts and games will be pro- (FOSTP), the Open Space Authority of Santa Clara Valley vided. Sponsored by: The Friends of Santa Teresa Park, (OSA), 4H, and the Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation, United Neigh- Center (WERC). Entertainment included Mexican folk borhoods of Santa Clara County, City of San Jose’s Com- dancers and mariachi singers. munity Action and Pride Grant Program. Emergency Continued on page 2 agencies’ vehicles and public officials will attend depending on their schedule.

The Friends of Santa Teresa Park (FOSTP) is a volunteer Cattle Grazing Begins in Santa Teresa Park: Pg. 2 organization, founded in 1992 and based in San Jose, whose Curie Drive Street Improvements: Pg. 2 purpose is to support Santa Teresa County Park. We are a di- Poison oak education: Pg. 3 verse group with a wide range of interests. Our members in- Eagle Scout Projects on the Ohlone/Nature Trails: Pg. 3 clude equestrians, hikers, runners, mountain bikers, historians, Then and Now Stories About Rancho Santa Teresa’s Histo- teachers, photographers, trail crew leaders, geocachers, 4H and ry: Pg. 4-5 scout leaders, and concerned members of the community. We News in Pictures: Pg. 6 serve as an interface between the community and the County Rancho San Vicente Dedication, 6/3/17: Pg 7 Parks Department. We report on problems and concerns in the park and recommend changes and improvements to it. We help Open Space Authority Protects Land in Santa Teresa Hills: out with trail maintenance and park events. If you are interested Pg. 7 in helping out at the park or just want to know what's going on, Meet Ranger Justin Everts: Pg. 8 you are welcome to join us. See our website for more informa- Park Volunteer Program News: Pg. 8 tion. You are welcome to join our Yahoo Group: See http://www.stpfriends.org/#newsletters for this http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FoSTP/ and past newsletters. 1 Friends of Santa Teresa Park Newsletter Summer 2017 grazing his cattle. If goats were used for vegetation con- Continued from page 1 trol, they could cost the County $900 per acre and must be Trail Watch volunteer Janice Frazier brought her horse, herded and tended. Goats can be used in areas where cat- Caribe. There was face-painting, cartoon caricatures, old- tle cannot be used. Here is a presentation on cattle-grazing time games, kids craft activities, horseshoe tossing, cattle in the park by Barry Hill, Natural Resource Program Su- roping (of saw horses), and branding (using rubber stamps pervisor for the County Parks: and ink). A blacksmith brought a portable forge and ham- http://www.stpfriends.org/Santa_Teresa_County_Park_ mered metal into different shapes. In the east barn, there Grazing_Management_Program-Barry_Hill.pdf was storytelling, historical slideshows, and a hay-pulling demonstration. For pictures of Fandango 2016, see http://www.stpfriends.org/#newpictures

Cattle grazing in the field by the Pueblo Area.

By Michael Boulland

The Friends of Santa Teresa Park board members, Mike Boulland and Ron Horii, are working with the County Kim Gardner at the Friends of Santa Teresa Park booth at Fandango Parks and Recreation Department and the City of San Jose 2016. to “design and prepare construction documents for the development of new shared-use pathways along the perim- eter of the historic area to facilitate access to the park”(Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation Agenda, On July 18, 2016, cattle arrived at Santa Teresa Park and March 7, 2012 – Agenda Item No. 7.) The county has allo- began grazing the hills. The cattle are there to reduce non- cated $600,000 for the neighborhood improvement proj- native grasses to improve habitats for native plants and wild- ect. A meeting is scheduled to discuss this issue August 2, life, particularly the Bay Checkerspot butterfly. Grazing also 2017, with County Park staff, City of San Jose staff, and helps to reduce fire hazards by managing fuel loads. The FOSTP members. grazing management plan was completed in 2013. It was implemented from 2014-2016. 9 miles of fencing and 7 wa- We look forward to this session to help our neighborhood ter systems were built. The grazing areas in the park are di- children have a safer route to and from school. We plan to vided into 4 pastures. The cattle are moved from one to the keep you informed about the latest events with this project other. They started in the field by the Pueblo Area. Later, in our newsletter or on our website: stpfriends.org. they were moved to the Rocky Ridge field, which is the larg- est. The fields will not be completely grazed down, to leave some cover for nesting birds. The hillsides near neighborhoods are covered with oak forests and are not suitable for grazing. There are currently no grazing fields west of Bernal Road, but eventually there will be. A rancher was selected to manage the cattle. He also manages cattle at the Mendoza Ranch in Coyote Lake County Park and on the ranch along Bailey Avenue. He has 50 head of cattle in the park to start with. The ultimate plan is for 20-140 cattle, depending on Curie Drive narrows starting at the Bear Tree Lot and ending at the food available. The rancher pays a fee to the County for San Ignacio Ave. across from Bernal Intermediate School. 2 Friends of Santa Teresa Park Newsletter Summer 2017

By Greg Koopman

Poison oak in our hills is an extremely common plant. In fact, it is the most common woody shrub in California. There are many variations of this plant all over the world, but the one that is most abundant in our area is called Western Poison Oak and can be found all over the West Coast from Canada to Baja California. Western Poison Oak always has groups of three leaves with smooth edges. Poi- son oak can grow as a shrub, as a climbing vine, or as a very large bush. It can grow in places with extreme sunlight to dense shade. The plant's color varies and is usually deter- mined by the season. It can appear as very shiny, oily look- ing, green, dull green, yellow, or even a vibrant red. The green, brown, or reddish branches can be bare branches in Boy Scout Andrew Yanogacio (in blue) of Scout Troop the winter, or the leaves can include red berries in the fall. 227 organized an Eagle Scout project to work on the Poison oak is in the Toxicodendron genus of the flowering Ohlone Trail. Starting on 4/2/17, Andrew and other vol- plants of the sumac family. Poison oak is not actually an unteers, as well as Senior Park Ranger Frank Weiland oak but the leaves resemble the leaves of a white oak tree. (right) worked on the Ohlone Trail, improving drainage. Poison oak is not actually poisonous but has a common allergen called urushiol. Urushiol appears to be an oil but it is actually a resin that appears everywhere on the plant and can be highly transferable to hands, pant legs, shoes, dogs, garden tools, automobile seats, etc. Also, never burn poison oak, as the allergen can be carried by the smoke. According to the American Skin Association, "About 85% of the pop- ulation is [to varying degrees] allergic to...poison oak, and about 10 to 15 percent are extremely allergic." They also stated that," This is the most common allergic reaction in the US and affects as many as 50 million Americans each year."

If you feel you have come in contact with it, you should be Andrew (right) and another scout work on clearing fallen okay as long as it is washed off with cool water and a strong trees from the Nature Trail. Others picked up trash and soap using a washcloth within an hour or two. Any contam- cleaned off graffiti from the waterfall. inated clothing, etc. should be removed from any further contact until thoroughly cleaned. A reaction often begins at the point of contact on the skin with a highly itchy dot or row of dots resembling bug bites. Do not ever scratch the infected area because the resin and inflammation can spread. Sometimes, I will cut the toe area off of a sock and make a sleeve to cover the infected area of my arm so I do not scratch it while sleeping at night. In extreme cases it is important to seek medical help for a strong allergic reaction. It is important to be able to identify and avoid poison oak at all times. Do not touch plants that you do not know about, and of course, always stay on the trails.

Worn-out and vandalized signs along the Nature Trail, originally placed there in 1981, are being replaced as part of an Eagle Scout project by Ethan Chen. New posts were installed on June 9 & 10, 2017. New signs are being fabri- cated. 3 Friends of Santa Teresa Park Newsletter Summer 2017 them about a modern archeological excavation discovery of a grizzly bear burial near to the base of the tree. I was amazed how big the tree has grown since I first saw the A Request to Learn More About the History of Rancho Santa Teresa large oak tree in 1972. The current health of the tree showed no damage after a deliberate fire destroyed the remains of By Michael Boulland the original Bernal Adobe home back in the late 1970’s. I realized the Bear Tree stood for more than 192 years. The At our last Friends of Santa Teresa Park meeting, a new vol- tree’s mammoth limbs have grown heavy over the years. unteer, Marilyn August, wanted to know more about the Some limbs are more than forty-two-inches in diameter, so rich history of the Rancho Santa Teresa area. Hearing her large that the County Parks department had to place huge request, I realized more articles need to be written in our steel poles under the branches to support the water soaked newsletter that keep the tradition of retelling the colorful limbs from falling to the ground. stories from the old Rancho Santa Teresa era. I plan to de- vote a section of each future newsletter for retelling the his- At the Rancho, the Bernal family enjoyed many Hispanic torical stories in a column called “Then and Now Stories of sporting events of the early California rancho days. The Rancho Santa Teresa’s History.” most popular contest was the bull and bear fights. During the 1822-1855 Spanish and Mexican rule of California, Ran- On June 2, 2017, I walked around the Bear Tree Lot with cho Santa Teresa held popular fandango parties that every- San Jose’s Councilmember Sergio Jimenez and his staff one was invited to attend. These fevents could last from one member Helen Chapman. I took them to the fence, and to two weeks, with the Bernal family hospitality supplying Mountain Charlie Clampers Monument dedicated to the their overnight guests shelter and a delicious barbeque feast. “The Bernal Family Adobe Site and Bear Tree” on Curie Families traveled from the Pueblo San Jose and surrounding Drive. They were very curious about hearing the property’s ranches to enjoy their favorite social event of the year, a fan- oral legends and wanted to see more of the historic sites. dango filled with dancing, drinking, celebration, and music.

The culminating highlight of the event was to sit around the hacienda’s wooden stockade to select a bull and make a wa- ger on which animal would survive a fight to the death with a bear. Typically, when attacking an opponent, a bull’s head thrust upward, while the bear's arms swipe downward.

The tradition of the event was to handicap both the animals in a unique manner that balanced the enormous size, strength, and sharp claws of the grizzly bear’s body to the long, sharp horns and hard kicks of the long-horned bull’s front feet. Separating the two animals from each other was one long chain. First, the bulls two front feet were locked to the front end of the chain, while the other end secured the grizzly bear's back two feet. Once, all the guests were surrounding the arena, the event started when the grizzly bear was released from tree and sent out into the arena to a fight to the death. Unable to move freely and frightened by the long sharp horns of the bull, the fierce grizzly bear would San Jose District 2 City Councilmember Sergio Jimenez (center) at the attack. As he charged the bull on all four paws, he would Bear Tree Lot’s Clampers monument on Curie Drive with Ron Horii stop and stand up on his back two feet, only to have the bull (left) and Mike Boulland, (right). Mike gave a tour of the Santa Tere- pull the bear’s two feet from under him by the bull’s front sa Park Historic Area, 6/2/17. Accompanying them was Helen feet backing away. The awkward hobble chain was designed Chapman and FOSTP member Greg Koopman, who took the picture. to trip the bear when the bull backed away and forced the two animals to fight. Sometimes it took two or three sepa- Next, I wanted to show them the actual Bear Tree with the rate bulls fights before the strongest grizzly succumbed to iron ring tree scar left on the tree limb from the early 1820’s the long-horned bull’s sharp attacks. Legend has it that 700 to verify the Bear Tree stories. The ring is from the Spanish grizzly bears died entertaining the Bernal’s Vaqueros and or Mexican Vaquero Bernal ranch hands who chained the guests at their Rancho Santa Teresa. When California en- wild sedated grizzly bears to the tree to await their turn to tered the Union, bull and bear fights were made illegal, and fight a fierce bull in the Bernal’s deadly stockade. I also told the event ceased.

4 Friends of Santa Teresa Park Newsletter Summer 2017 Saving the Bear Tree Site Dioleta, a very talented artist, ten-year-old Baldwin Elemen- The County’s purchase of Lot #9 property on June 7, 1993, tary School student, who presented the certificate to Mike was an important date in the story of saving the original Honda. 1825 Rancho Santa Teresa Hacienda adobe historical site. The important site needed to be saved not only because of The dedication event was the end result of several years of its historic buildings, but because of its rich oral interpreta- work by neighbors, county officials, and my Baldwin fourth tion literature that contains a rare opportunity to retell and grade students. The property was in danger of being turned enjoy a local oral story as did our local pioneers. The oral into a housing subdivision. Realizing the importance of the literature that been documented keeps many of the 6000- site to give our local school children a place to learn, re- year history of Native American, Spanish, Mexican and spect, and develop pride in their historic neighborhood, a American pioneer settlements alive. Keeping the tradition of call was sent out to help save the Bear Tree Site. Most im- retelling these historical oral history stories will keep filling portantly to the children, the site would help keep alive the the imagination of our young children and establish a sense custom of passing down the rich, colorful oral history sto- of neighborhood hero character and identity. ries that were passed down from the families of pre-historic natives to families of today. Below is one example of the The Bear Tree monument holds the title of being the first children’s creative poem work that was used to help save the monument in the park dedicated to the famous Rancho San- local history site: ta Teresa’s Bernal Family Rancho and its bull and bear fights. This dedication set in motion the dream to purchase Saving the Bear Tree and add various surrounding pieces of property to save the By Mr. Boulland's Class, Baldwin School existing Bernal family rancho buildings. Each building site was to retell the fascinating history and herstory of the In 1824, there once was a tree, Bernal’s family pioneer struggles to survive during separate That didn't let bears go free. time periods. The site was to include the various five Bernal A great grizzly bear was caught, family homes used as educational interpretive centers to Then for sport, the bear and bull fought. help explain the different eras of farming and water from A long iron chain was placed around the grizzly's neck, prehistoric man to the present day. Spectators around the corral, all could see it, they even checked. The community felt the site’s purpose would be an excellent All of San Jose came and cheered, opportunity to fill the need of our local school children to Even Don Bernal with a long black beard. visit on field trips and learn about living on an early Califor- The tree survived in our neighbor's lot, nia adobe hacienda. Funding by Bob Biggs, a realtor, and Over time, everybody just forgot. the E. Clampus Vitus ®Mountain Charlie No. 1850 organi- In 1993, the tree is still there, zation, allowed the Friends of Santa Teresa Park, Santa Because Mike Honda really cares. Clara County Park and Recreation Department, and the lo- The county was so kind, cal students from the Oak Grove School District to set in To make up their mind, motion the task of partnering together to build the historical Protecting the Bear Tree, monument on Curie Drive. Saving it for you and me. Thank you for saving the Bear Tree, On June 7, 1993, a dedication event was held. Formal pre- Now it will go down in history! sentations by County Supervisor Mike Honda, San Jose City Councilmember Charlotte Powers, members of the Friends of Santa Teresa Park, the Lead Ranger Eric Goodrich, and the Santa Clara County Park Director recognized the historical importance of the site to the Santa Teresa community, City of San Jose, and the County of Santa Clara. The Bernal Intermediate School Jazz Band, led by Randy Tyler, played music and welcomed all the neighbors and guests to the fes- tivities. The culminating gift to mark the importance of the event was the certificate with each child’s fingerprint who was involved in saving the site. It was given as a personal memento to commemorate this historic occasion to Mike Honda for all his work in helping the students protect the historic lot and Bear Tree for our community. The certifi- The Bear Tree, supported by metal braces, in the Bear Tree Lot on cate also included the student drawing created by Jeffery Curie Drive.

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Planter box restoration by Boy Scout Troop 164 from Milpitas, led by REI/Bay Area Ridge Trail Work Day on the Stile Ranch Trail, Anthony Trieu, 7/16/16 11/5/16

Lots of people went to Santa Teresa Spring to play Pokemon Go, 7/19/16 Ron Horii gave a photo class at the Bernal Ranch on 11/12/16. After he gave an outdoor demonstration of cameras and an indoor slideshow on photography techniques, he led a walk around the ranch and to Santa Teresa Spring (above).

Campout and Movie Night, Pueblo Area, 8/6/16 San Jose Fire Department and CalFire training exercise in the Pueblo Area, controlled burn, 6/7/17

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In the South Almaden Valley, just 0.6 miles from Santa Te- resa Park at the other end of Fortini Road, across McKean The Open Space Authority of Santa Clara Valley (OSA) Road, is Rancho San Vicente. It is 966 acres, purchased by recently purchased two properties in the Santa Teresa Santa Clara County in 2009. It adjoins Calero County Park Hills, protecting them from development and hopefully and is an expansion to it. It sits in-between Calero, Al- allowing a future linkage between Santa Teresa County maden Quicksilver, and Santa Teresa County Parks and po- Park and Almaden Lake. The first is the 8.79-acre Sanfilip- tentially can provide links between them. The trails master po property up in the hills at the end of Miracle Mountain plan for Rancho San Vicente and Calero began in 2010 and Drive, with views of Almaden Lake. It had originally been was approved in 2013. Since then, trail design and construc- slated for a 7800 square foot house. The OSA bought it tion have been on-going. On 6/3/17, there was a dedica- for $825,000 in September of 2015. On 5/13/17, the tion ceremony at Rancho San Vicente. It was originally OSA's Land Steward team had a cleanup of the property, scheduled as a grand opening for the whole park addition, where they picked up trash and covered up graffiti on trees but because of construction and permitting delays, it was and a stone monument. not ready to open to the public. However, the Lisa Killough Trail was complete. The trail honors the late County Parks director, Lisa Killough. The ceremony honored her and dedicated the trail named after her. Her family was invited to participate. There were speeches and a ribbon-cutting for the new trail. Participants got to hike to a rest area on the trail, called Lisa's Lookout. That area has picnic tables, great views, and a sign about Lisa Killough. The park should open in summer of 2017. The Lisa Killough and Cottle Trails will provide a loop. More trails will be built in the future. For pictures of Rancho San Vicente and Calero, see: http://rhorii.com/#Calero-RanchoSanVicente

Cleanup at the Sanfilippo property, 5/13/17

In May of 2017, the OSA purchased the historic 51.78-acre Pfeiffer property, which is adjacent to the Boulder Ridge Golf Course and overlooks the Almaden Valley. The land has been owned by the Pfeiffer Family since the 1940's. It includes the Greystone Quarry site. Sandstone from that quarry was used to build Stanford University, St. Joseph's Basilica, and what is now the San Jose Museum of Art. The property includes sandstone rock outcroppings and caves, with panoramic views across the Almaden Valley. It can Ribbon-cutting on the Lisa Killough Trail easily be seen from the Los Alamitos Creek Trail and Al- maden Quicksilver County Park. The OSA will be working on plans for volunteer activities and docent-led tours.

View of the Pfeiffer property in the Santa Teresa Hills, from Almaden Quicksilver County Park Ron Horii at Lisa’s Lookout (by Mike Boulland)

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By Kitty Monahan, FOSTP Board Member

At the Friends of Santa Teresa County Park's board meet- In 2013, the County Parks' Volunteer Program moved into ing on Thursday, July 6, 2017, Santa Clara County Parks the Muriel Wright Center in Santa Teresa Park, which was Ranger Justin Everts helped the members plan National previously a residential juvenile correctional center. They Night Out and the Fandango events. Justin started as a sea- took up half of the building, sharing it with the County sonal park ranger in August 2014 at Sanborn County Park Sheriffs who patrol the County Parks. The building was and then at Anderson County Park. He became a perma- remodeled with the help of Americorps crews, who were nent park ranger in June of 2016 and assigned to Hellyer housed in the center. Americorps performed maintenance County Park. and construction work all over the county. In 2017, the Volunteer Program temporarily moved into offices in a After graduating from Washington State University with a different part of the building, closer to the sheriffs. They degree in geology, Justin met Ryan Lugo, a Santa Clara will be moving into a new building, which will be built at County Parks ranger, who introduced him to the County's Vasona County Park, next to park headquarters. The rea- Park system. He signed up for park classes at Santa Rosa son they are moving is that the County wants to use the Junior College and was hired by Santa Clara County Parks Muriel Wright Center for their mental health program. The in 2014. He is now working out of class as the Senior Rang- sheriffs will stay. er at Hellyer County Park, standing in for Senior Ranger Frank Weiland who is on bereavement leave as his father The Volunteer Program has a new manager, Julie Lee. She died July 6, 2017 in Morgan Hill. The Friends of Santa Te- has been with the County Parks for over 27 years and was resa Park welcome Justin. previously a park ranger and a supervisor of the interpretive programs. She came to Muriel Wright in 2016 as the interim manager, replacing Frank Weiland, who was also an interim manager, but left to become the senior ranger at Hellyer/Santa Teresa. Julie has been named to the manager position permanently.

Temporary Volunteer Program Office Entrance at the Muriel Wright Center, behind the basketball courts This newsletter is funded by the City of San Jose’s Community Action and Pride (CAP) Grant. FOSTP is a member of the United Neighborhoods of Santa Clara County, which administers this grant. Ranger Justin Everts at the Santa Teresa Golf Course Upper Banquet Facility For more on FOSTP, see http://www.stpfriends.org/